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2013 Columbia St. Mary's Foundation Gala

For more information about the 2013
Columbia St. Mary’s Foundation Gala,
please click HERE.

It’s often said that breast cancer is a disease that affects everyone.
There is scarcely a person who doesn’t know someone – a mother, a
sister, a daughter, a friend – who hasn’t battled this disease.

It’s with these women in mind that we will gather on October
26th for the 2013 Columbia St. Mary’s Foundation Gala, presented by the
Physicians of F.W. Madison Medical Associates, S.C. All money raised
will benefit Columbia St. Mary’s Breast Cancer Programs.

Breast cancer is thought to be a disease that affects older women. In
fact, the median age for a breast cancer diagnosis is 61 years old. But
increasingly, women are developing this disease at younger and younger
ages.

While still relatively rare, a recent study by The Journal
of the American Medical Association showed that in 2009, cases of
advanced breast cancer were found in 2.9 per 100,000 women age 25 to 39.
That’s up from 1.53 per 100,000 three decades ago. That increase
translates to about 550 more cases per year.

Breast cancer is a traumatic diagnosis for anyone, but when it
strikes someone so young, it’s especially devastating.

In 2013, Amelia Coffaro became one of those young women. She was just a
few months past her 28th birthday when she received her diagnosis.

Before February 6th, 2013, Amelia Coffaro was a normal 28-year-old
woman. She was in New York City, working as a photographer and living
her dream. But everything changed for her on that day in February.

For several months, Amelia had been experiencing back pain – when
she was home in July of 2012 for a routine physical, an x-ray revealed a
compressed disc. She also had a small lump in her chest, but it was
believed to be just a mass of inflamed tissue. Her doctor instructed her
to monitor it closely, and Amelia returned to her life in New York.

“I was so busy and always on the go. When you’re going, going,
going, you kind of don’t feel the symptoms,” says Amelia. “It’s not like
I was ever feeling really sick.”

But over the following months the back pain persisted and the lump
got bigger. Right after New Year’s, Amelia knew something was wrong. On
February 5th, she was on a plane back to Milwaukee, and the next day she
was in her doctor’s office at Columbia St. Mary’s.

“My doctor took one look and knew immediately,” she says.

Amelia was sent for an emergency mammogram, breast MRI and an
ultrasound. Later that same day she had a biopsy done and was diagnosed:
Stage 3 Inflammatory Invasive Breast Cancer.

“I remember being sad and scared,” she says. “It’s a surreal thing.
Your life literally changes in an instant. That was probably the hardest
thing. But I didn’t have a choice.”

“I love that I have this team of women who are strong and caring.
It’s a great thing,” she says. “I feel like I’m in the best hands
possible.”

“It’s a long road. But if there ever was a time to just be, this is
the time. You can’t do anything else but just be,” says Amelia. “You
don’t know what’s going to happen, you just need to let go and trust
that these doctors will see you through. The only thing you can choose
is your attitude. You choose to be positive and you can choose to be
happy.”

Amelia’s positive attitude and calmness in the face of so much
uncertainty are truly remarkable. For most 28-year-olds, cancer is
probably the absolute last thing on their mind. Doctors don’t even
recommend women get annual mammograms until they reach age 40.

Amelia refuses to dwell on that, though. For her, she finds peace by
staying busy and, as best as she can, continuing to do the things that
made her who she was before the diagnosis. As a photographer, she found
solace and inspiration through her viewfinder. Now as a cancer patient,
she continues to use her camera as an expression of herself. From the
very beginning, Amelia has been documenting her experience. It has
helped her stay balanced and remember who she is.

“Having that camera takes me outside of myself,” she says. “I’m not
sitting here as a cancer patient, I’m just a curious observer. That
helps with the fear.”

Her photography also helps keep the legions of supporters and loved
ones informed and up-to-date. Soon after her diagnosis, a group of her
friends and colleagues back in New York launched Project Amelia, an
online fundraiser that has raised more than $57,000 for Amelia’s cancer
treatment.

“I am so grateful. Seeing what my friends are doing because they
care about me is one of the most rewarding and hopeful things. It’s
motivation for me to keep going and get better,” she says. “Every little
ounce of support is love.”

Today, Columbia St. Mary’s treats more breast cancer patients than any
other area hospital. We're a destination of choice throughout
southeastern Wisconsin because women of all ages facing a breast cancer
diagnosis know that at Columbia St. Mary’s, they will get the most
specialized diagnostic approaches, state-of-the-art treatment options, a
care plan that is easy to navigate, and a team of compassionate
caregivers who treat every part of their health – their body, mind and
spirit.

And this year’s Columbia St. Mary's Foundation Gala will
help make that all possible.

This year, we will again return to one of our favorite locations, one
that promises an elegant and memorable evening – the Milwaukee Country
Club. This black-tie affair will feature a cocktail and hors d’oeuvres
reception, a gourmet three-course dinner, entertainment throughout the
evening, a silent auction and live fund-a-cause auction.

For more information about the 2013 Columbia St. Mary’s
Foundation Gala, including sponsorship levels and reservations, please
click HERE.